Actor Woody Harrelson arrives at the 'Rampart' special screening during AFI FEST 2011 on Nov. 5, 2011 in Hollywood, California. (Photo : Getty Images/ Christopher Polk)
With the success of "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," Disney and Lucasfilm are moving forward with more anthology films such as the upcoming "Han Solo" spin-off. The film will star Alden Ehrenreich as a younger version of the popular space pirate and it is now indicated that Woody Harrelson is joining the cast as well.
If he is cast, Harrelson will be portraying a mentor figure for the young Han Solo, Variety reported. It is further stated that he is currently the top choice for the role.
He first came into the spotlight in the 1980s with his portrayal of Woody Boyd on the television sitcom, "Cheers." He then became more prominent in films such as "Natural Born Killers," "Zombieland" and "The Hunger Games" series. He also starred in the HBO series "True Detective."
Other actors were in consideration for the role before Harrelson took the spotlight. Actor Christian Bale, known for portraying Bruce Wayne aka Batman in "The Dark Knight" trilogy, was also a runner up, Collider reported.
The spin-off will be produced by Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy, who has guided all of the new "Star Wars" films, and Allison Shearmur. Harrelson and Shearmur have worked together in the past, back when Shearmur was overseeing "The Hunger Games" series with Lionsgate.
Other key cast members include Donald Glover as a young Lando Calrissian and "Game of Thrones" star Emilia Clarke. Chris Miller and Phil Lord, who worked on "The Lego Movie" and the upcoming animated film "Marvel's Spider-Man," will be helming the project.
Very little is known about the plot of the film other than it will be set prior to the events of "Star Wars: A New Hope" and that it will show how Han Solo and Chewbacca got together. With Lando Calrissian included it is widely speculated the film will also show how Han won the Millennium Falcon.
"Han Solo" will begin production this year and is scheduled to release on May 25, 2018. The trailer for the recent spin-off, "Rogue One," can be viewed below:
